Inquiry report on 1984 Bunratty killing due next week

23-year-old Patrick Nugent was killed 36 years ago

Patrick Nugent, who died in 1984. An inquiry into the Garda investigation of his death is due to be given to the justice minister next week. File Picture.

An inquiry into how gardaí investigated the death of a 23-year-old man near Bunratty Castle 36 years ago is being finalised and should be with the justice minister next week.

Former judge Patrick Clyne was tasked with carrying out a Section 42 inquiry into the Garda handling of the case of Patrick Nugent, who was found dead near Bunratty Castle in Clare in 1984.

Mr Nugent was working as a banqueting manager at Bunratty Castle, when he was found dead in the Folk Park near the popular tourist attraction on February 11 that year.

For more than three decades, his death and a subsequent manslaughter trial and inquest have left some questions unanswered.

Allegations that his death was not properly investigated were considered by an independent review mechanism in 2014, which recommended that the case be examined under the Section 42 provisions of the Garda Síochána Act 2005.

Justice Clyne was appointed to lead the inquiry in 2017 and, in recent days, Justice Minister Helen McEntee confirmed that his final report is near completion and gave an “absolute commitment” that it would be received within two weeks.

“It must be very difficult and challenging for the family. I am sorry it has taken this long to even get to where we are today. Having spoken to the judge, I am confident that, while there have been a number of delays this year for different reasons, we will receive this report in the next two weeks,” she said.

Ms McEntee added that she will then consult with the attorney general and the Nugent family on the report and move to publish it “as soon as possible”.

The Nugent family from Sixmilebridge in Clare said it is “in the public interest” that the report is published and said they hope the circumstances of Patrick's death will be investigated in full.

“From the family’s point of view, it’s an inquiry into the Garda investigation and it’s not looking into the circumstances surrounding Pat’s death. We’re hoping that there will be a recommendation for a further investigation or inquiry into the actual circumstances of Pat’s death,” a spokesperson for the Nugent family told the Irish Examiner.

“We have a right to know and that’s what the family have wanted all these years. They want to know what happened to Pat that night."

The family representative said that Mr Nugent’s parents went to their grave “not knowing what happened” to their 23-year-old son, and that the tragedy “never went away” for his brothers, John and Martin.

“If there are recommendations, we hope they will be followed,” the family spokesperson added.

Independent TD Michael McNamara, who recently raised “ongoing delays” in the Nugent inquiry in the Dáil, said he will be raising the matter with Ms McEntee next week.

“I do hope that the judge will be able to comply with the timelines indicated in the Dáil,” Mr McNamara said.

“The minister said two weeks, so next Thursday I will be asking the minister to confirm that the report has been received,” he added.

To date, Section 42 inquiries have concluded in two other cold cases — the death of James Clancy in 1987 and the death of John Kelly in 2008 — and an inquiry is ongoing into the death of 23-year-old Shane Touhey, who was found dead in the River Brosna outside the village of Clara, Offaly, in 2002.

The unsolved killings were among 320 cases reviewed by a government-commissioned panel of legal experts in 2014 to consider allegations of Garda misconduct or shortcomings in investigations.